Data Is Improving Government Services, But at What Cost to Citizens' Privacy?

Data now informs almost everything the public sector does, and it also informs on us.

For many policymakers, troves of data can seem impenetrable. It can be hard to parse through the gathered information and even harder to apply that information to policy. Many cities, however, are getting better at using data to fix problems and improve the lives of people in their communities.

But at what cost?

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On this episode of "Go Public," recorded live from the Summit on Government Performance and Innovation earlier this month in Los Angeles, Governing's Zach Patton and J.B. Wogan talk about where data is being used well, where it shows promise in our civic life, and the privacy risks in its use.

The conference, hosted by Governing and Living Cities, convened more than 650 city government leaders and employees to discuss the promise and pitfalls of using data to develop policy, deliver services and monitor governments' performance -- all in a fair and equitable way.